Course Description:

The Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy of American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) published “Vestibular Rehabilitation for Peripheral Vestibular Hypofunction: An Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline” in the Journal of Neurologic Physical Therapy in 2016. The goal of this Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) was to describe best practice in vestibular rehabilitation for the assessment and treatment of peripheral vestibular hypofunction for the purposes of improving effectiveness, efficiency and consistency of care within this patient population. UW Health has adopted the Academy’s Peripheral Vestibular Hypofunction CPG and is offering this course for clinicians to further develop their skills in the evaluation and treatment of this condition. The course will cover the key recommendations from the published guideline and more in-depth training for taking a subjective history, utilizing questionnaires for dizziness and imbalance, performing appropriate examination techniques for balance, gait and falls risk, performing an oculomotor examination, testing Vestibular Ocular Reflex (VOR) function, examining motion sensitivity, conducting appropriate treatment interventions for gaze instability, dizziness, imbalance and falls risk, educating patients and referring to and collaborating with other disciplines. The course will be divided into 2, 2-hour sessions and will include didactic training and hands-on skill development.